“End Nuclear Insanity Before Nuclear Insanity Ends Humanity.”
Nov 07, 2025
Today’s Image . . .
The Ivy King test, 1952, Enewetak Atoll. (Courtesy of the National Nuclear Security Administration/Nevada Site Office via Wikimedia Commons)
LLAW’s All Things Nuclear Review Today . . .
From the following “EMISSARY” article: Sometimes good policy can be as simple as not nuking yourself in the foot. This is a message to Trump from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
What scares me most is that Trump is just one individual, technically uncontrolled, who fails to consider the constant mistakes he makes, and I am of the opinion this one ranks near the top, if not #1, in his top 10 absolute mistakes — all of them related, so far as my top 10 goes, to both our country and the world.
His mistakes, because he is the “elected” President of the USA — the most affluent and influential country on planet Earth — threatens the life of every living entity on the planet, including you and me, and most all of the unaware animal kingdom as well. Making any mistake that can cause WWIII, is far more critical than, say, shutting down the House of Representatives, which is certainly more than sad enough.
In other words Trump’s individual actions are threatening the world, and no matter his mental health, he is in a position to end life for us all, and, as I said, you and me, and now I am led to believe at least one top General in the U.S. military, has at least preliminarily and unofficially, verbally requested his removal from office, partly because of this arbitrary individual action to restart “nuclear testing” and other issues that could easily erupt into WWIII. ~llaw
Today’s Feature Story from LLAW’s NUCLEAR WORLD TODAY is from category. . .
Nuclear WAR
NEWS
The Ivy King test, 1952, Enewetak Atoll. (Courtesy of the National Nuclear Security Administration/Nevada Site Office via Wikimedia Commons)
commentary
Trump Has an Out on Nuclear Testing. He Should Take It.
Sometimes good policy can be as simple as not nuking yourself in the foot.
Published on November 6, 2025
On September 23, 1992, shortly after 3 p.m., the ground 65 miles northwest of Las Vegas shook violently as an underground nuclear weapon detonated, releasing as much energy as 5,000 tons of TNT. That explosion was the last nuclear test conducted by the United States. Thirty-three years later, President Donald Trump appears to want to conduct more.
Last Thursday, Trump announced on Truth Social that “because of other countries testing programs, I have instructed the Department of War to start testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis.” In an interview the next day, Trump doubled down: “I don’t wanna be the only country that doesn’t test.”
Resuming the testing of nuclear weapons would be a step toward nuclear anarchy. Fortunately, Trump has a way out. Exploding warheads isn’t the only way to “test” nuclear weapons. The United States could test components or subsystems (a possibility alluded to by Energy Secretary Chris Wright), or it could flight-test nuclear-capable missiles. (Indeed, it does both these already.) Trump should capitalize on this ambiguity by announcing a path forward that doesn’t involve detonating a nuclear warhead.
Central to Trump’s justification for testing is his confident assertion that China and Russia are doing so. The U.S. intelligence community, however, appears to have a more nuanced view. In 2024, the State Department reported that Washington was “concerned” that Beijing and Moscow were testing—a statement that stops short of an unambiguous accusation.
The intelligence community’s apparent uncertainty may be surprising. After all, doesn’t nuclear testing involve humungous explosions that ought to be easy to detect?
Not necessarily.
Nuclear testing can involve tiny “ultra-low” yields, equivalent to igniting fractions of an ounce of TNT. In such “supercritical” experiments—which could be conducted to check the safety of existing warhead designs—nuclear material is compressed just enough to allow a chain reaction to occur for a moment. It’s like striking a match just hard enough to cause a tiny flame that fizzles in an instant.
The problem facing the intelligence community is not so much detecting supercritical experiments but distinguishing them from subcritical experiments. Subcritical experiments—which could be conducted to understand how nuclear material changes as it ages—involve compressing nuclear material but stopping just before a nuclear chain reaction begins. This time, the match sparks but does not quite catch.
The distinction between supercritical and subcritical experiments may seem arcane—and, in fairness, it is. The experiments use similar, perhaps identical, equipment, which makes it extremely tricky for rivals to differentiate between them. It’s one thing to notice someone striking matches; it’s another to see whether they’re doing so just hard enough to create the most evanescent of flames. But the difference matters because, for Washington, it defines the point at which an experiment involving nuclear material becomes a nuclear test. The U.S. government does not consider subcritical experiments to be nuclear testing—it conducts them itself. Its concern is that Chinese and Russian experiments cross to just the other side of the criticality line.
Yet, even if China and Russia are conducting ultra-low-yield nuclear tests, the costs to the United States of resuming testing itself will outweigh the benefits.
Ultra-low-yield testing probably won’t help China and Russia make more effective nuclear weapons. In 2012, the U.S. National Academies concluded that “it is unlikely that [such] tests would enable Russia to develop new strategic capabilities outside of its nuclear-explosion test experience.” China, with less experience in nuclear-weapon design, is even less well-placed to capitalize on ultra-low-yield testing, with the National Academies stating that “it is not clear how China might utilize such testing in its strategic modernization,” which is another reason to question whether Beijing is engaged in this activity.
Meanwhile, there is no technical reason for the United States to test nuclear weapons of any yield. It can ensure the safety and reliability of its current stockpile without detonating existing warheads, and it could even design new warheads based on previous tests (whether or not that’s a good idea).
Indeed, for many supporters of nuclear testing, the primary reason to test isn’t technical—it’s political. One advocate told the Washington Post that the United States needs to “do something to demonstrate that we’re not going to be intimidated or coerced by these autocrats in Beijing, Moscow and Pyongyang.” If this is the goal, ultra-low-yield testing—which isn’t exactly Trumpian, anyway—wouldn’t suffice. It’d be necessary to make the ground shake, equivalent to throwing the lit match onto a sea of gasoline.
This step would open Oppenheimer’s box (sorry, Pandora). If the United States conducts a full-scale nuclear test, China, Russia, and North Korea will likely follow. In fact, they may even precede the United States, given the year or three required to prepare a test at the facility formerly known as the Nevada Test Site. Moreover, a Chinese test will almost inevitably spark an Indian test, and an Indian test will prompt a Pakistani one. All these states will want to detonate ground shakers too.
Such a world would be more tense and less secure. Any resumption of testing would, in part, reflect increased international tensions, but it would also exacerbate them. Leaders would believe—correctly—that rivals were seeking to intimidate them through testing and take steps to show those rivals have failed. Those steps—nuclear tests, exercises, or threats, say—would risk driving tensions higher.
To make matters worse, other states could make more use of testing data than the United States. The United States conducted over 1,000 nuclear tests previously, while Russia has conducted 715 and China a mere forty-five. As a result, U.S. weapon scientists almost certainly understand nuclear-weapon physics better than their Russian and Chinese counterparts. A restart of full-yield testing will level the playing field, allowing Russia and particularly China to develop new types of nuclear weapons.
Sometimes good policy can be as simple as not nuking yourself in the foot. Trump has an out. He should take it.
ODAY’s LLAW’s NUCLEAR WORLD NEWS
About Today’s Nuclear News and How it Works:
There are 7 categories, including a bonus non-nuclear category for news about the Yellowstone caldera and other volcano and caldera activity around the world that also play an important role in the survival of human and other life.
The feature categories provide articles and information about ‘all things nuclear’ for you to pick from, usually with up to 3 links with headlines concerning the most important media stories in each category, but sometimes fewer and occasionally even none (especially so with the Yellowstone Caldera). If there was no news from a Category today, the Category will not appear. The Categories are listed below in their usual order:
- All Things Nuclear
- Nuclear Power
- Nuclear Power Emergencies
- Nuclear War Threats
- Nuclear War
- Yellowstone Caldera
- IAEA News (Friday’s only)
A current Digest of major nuclear media headlines with automated links is listed below by nuclear Category (in the above listed order). If a Category heading does not appear in the daily news Digest, it means there was no news reported from this Category today. Generally, the three best articles in each Category from around the nuclear world(s) are Posted. Occasionally, if a Post is important enough, it may be listed in multiple Categories.
Nuclear World News for Friday, (11/07/2025)
All Things Nuclear
NEWS
‘US has enough nuclear to blow up world 150 times’: Donald Trump says ‘we are number 1’
Times of India
I have spoken to President Putin and Xi about it, and everybody would like to spend all of that money on other things,” Trump said. “I want peace all …
Vladimir Putin’s endless nuclear threats are a sign of Russian weakness – Atlantic Council
Atlantic Council
Russia’s latest bout of nuclear posturing reveals much about Moscow’s … All rights reserved. Privacy Policy · Cookie Policy · Terms and …
How authorities plan on cleaning up giant nuclear waste dump site in Armstrong County
YouTube
… nuclear waste dumps in the country. KDKA-TV’s Erika Stanish has … All Things Secured New 5K views · 19:26 · Go to channel. I Visited Abandoned …
Nuclear Power
NEWS
New US Nuclear Missile May Have Broken Cover – Newsweek
Newsweek
… nuclear–powered torpedo and a missile capable of striking anywhere in the world. The unconfirmed appearance of the new U.S. nuclear cruise missile …
NuScale Power Reports Third Quarter 2025 Results
NuScale Power
… Power” or the “Company”), the industry-leading provider of proprietary and innovative advanced SMR nuclear technology, today announced results for …
Economists say nuclear power might lower Ohio energy costs
Ohio Capital Journal
Electricity prices are rising in Ohio with increasing demand from data centers powering artificial intelligence. Adding power from nuclear plants …
Nuclear Power Emergencies
NEWS
China Reveals Critical Specifications For World’s Largest Nuclear–Powered Cargo Ship
Marine Insight
… electricity, compared to around 33 percent in traditional steam-based nuclear systems. The ship will also have a 10MW diesel generator for emergencies …
Japan to Step Up LNG Purchases for Emergency Reserve From January, Industry Ministry …
EnergyNow.com
… nuclear reactor outages, among other issues. JERA confirmed it has secured one cargo for each of the three winter months over the past two winters …
Transfers, postings of doctors suspended except for national emergencies
The Business Standard
… emergencies. Bangladesh. TBS Report. 07 November, 2025, 12:50 am … Nuclear Power Plant. Photo: Md Tajul Islam/TBS · Exchange rate adjustment …
Nuclear War Threats
NEWS
Vladimir Putin’s endless nuclear threats are a sign of Russian weakness – Atlantic Council
Atlantic Council
… nuclear threats aimed at Western leaders. This Russian nuclear saber-rattling has remained a prominent feature of the war ever since. Putin’s …
Netflix’s ‘A House of Dynamite’ sparks discussion about nuclear threats | PBS News
PBS
Netflix’s ‘A House of Dynamite’ sparks discussion about nuclear threats … The threat of nuclear war was actively debated and discussed. The …
Trump Has an Out on Nuclear Testing. He Should Take It.
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
The Nuclear Policy Program aims to reduce the risk of nuclear war. Our experts diagnose acute risks stemming from technical and geopolitical …
Nuclear War
NEWS
Vladimir Putin’s endless nuclear threats are a sign of Russian weakness – Atlantic Council
Atlantic Council
… nuclear threats aimed at Western leaders. This Russian nuclear saber-rattling has remained a prominent feature of the war ever since. Putin’s nuclear …
Trump Has an Out on Nuclear Testing. He Should Take It.
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Last Thursday, Trump announced on Truth Social that “because of other countries testing programs, I have instructed the Department of War to start …
Talk of new atomic tests by Trump and Putin should make UK rethink its role as a nuclear …
The Conversation
The Russian president, Vladimir Putin, has said that Russia may could carry out nuclear weapons tests for the first time since the cold war.
Weekly Roundup of News from iaea.org
11/07/2025
This week at the IAEA: from the World Nuclear Exhibition to preparations for COP30 — explore how nuclear energy is contributing to climate solutions, supporting women in the field, and linking global ambition with local action.
7 November 2025
IAEA at COP30: Nuclear Energy, Technology and Science Shaping a Sustainable Future
Read more →
7 November 2025
Update 326 – IAEA Director General Statement on Situation in Ukraine
6 November 2025
Nuclear Explained – Why Do We Need Nuclear Power?
Global momentum continues to build behind nuclear power. There are more than 400 nuclear reactors in operation today in 31 countries, and the number of countries that are considering, planning or well advanced in introducing nuclear power into their energy mix has grown to around 40. Read more →
6 November 2025
IAEA and AtkinsRéalis Sign Partnership to Support Women in Nuclear Energy
4 November 2025
IAEA Takes Centre-Stage at World Nuclear Exhibition 2025
